Today we finish off the reviews of the Winter 2009 sets. BZPower Forum Assistant Roa McToa shares her thoughts on Raanu, the fiery Agori villager. Is this little guy up to snuff? Read on!

You recently got paid your allowance, and it happened to be ten bucks. Well, that is not enough to purchase one of those fine looking Glatorian sets that you have been eyeballing for so long, so you check out the shelf with the small sets on it. There's still a few 2008 Matoran there, but way in the back you see something! It's the Last Agori set on the shelf, and it's the one you wanted most! Raanu! You snatch him up, make the purchase, and rush home to build him and play!

PresentationFrom the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.

The back of the box, like all the others, is plain and sandy with Malum and Raanu standing near the staircase into the Arena Magna. You see all the typical writing and gobbledeegook that's necessary to put on packaging. Looking to the top right, you see a B.I.O. code, which can be used on the Bionicle website for more awesome internet goodies!

The instructions are a simple fold out featuring Raanu's build on one side, and a poster of all the Glatorian and Agori together in their battle splendor.

Let's dump it out and see what's inside!

BuildingHalf the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?

Starting off, the build is really simple, just like the other Agori. Snap the legs and arms to the body...

...snap the hands and feet to it, and the head... Oh wait THAT DOESN'T GO THERE! ARRRGH HEAD ON FIRE!

Attach the mask, shield and weapon, and voila! You have a brave fire Agori!

Set DesignNow that the set is complete, we can critique how it looks from every angle. New or interesting pieces can also be examined here.

You can see the assortment of goodies you receive with Raanu. You get the Solek style legs in dark red which is a bonus! You also get some really spiffy yellow-orange fists and feet. I am loving the new fists, they have so many uses that are not for fists! The colors in this set are a nice addition to any parts bin. The re-use of the red Matoro claws from a previous Target exclusive Exo-Force set is well appropriated as shield pieces, as well as joy and elation that they are available in a small set! The fire sword is meh, we've all seen it before, and the mask is beautiful! I like the new heads, as they have some good potential for MOCs. I can't wait to try them out as eyeballs...

You can clearly see the potential for using the mask in MOCs, and it looks fabulous on Malum.

The color blending is interesting. The outside of the mask has nicely blended colors from red to orange, with more red showing, and on the inside, the yellow is more prominent. This gives the mask a fiery backlit glow that looks really appealing. It is somewhat translucent in the yellow area, and it catches the light well, giving an almost illuminated effect with its natural color.

The fire sword is only minorly different than before. The color of the flame is a tad more opaque, and brighter than Vakama's sword, at least on my set...

The sets design in itself is as basic as any Agori set we have seen so far. The legs are a bit stiff and hard to pose with the 90 degree arm part, and the set would have been better with a different style of leg. Like the other Agori, really not too much new to see here other than some nice re-colored parts, and a few new parts. He poses better if you put his given arms for legs and his legs for arms.

PlayabilityThe other half of the fun is in playing with the set. How well does the set function and is it enjoyable to play with?

Raanu is a neat set, and has some decent play value for the first week or so, then you feel that you want something more.

He is capable of plenty of poses, and can do some radical looking moves, but he is still a stiff little set due to the construction of the legs and arms. A poseable elbow and knee can go a long way, and I would love to see that feature put into small sets. Raanu is a basic and simple play guy, and probably one of the best suited Agori blocker next to Metus.

The Agori's use in the Glatorian Action Figure Game can be good. I have never tried out the game using a blocker, but it states that your Agori can take a hit for your Glatorian to help you gain an edge in battle. Like I had mentioned in Tarduk's review, the Action Figure Game is a lot more fun and challenging when you make up your own rules.

Final ThoughtsOnce it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?

I got to experience the set in my second purchase of 2009 sets, and I am happy that I bought Raanu. The red blades are a welcome addition to my parts bins, and having actual fists for hands is just plain awesome! I really like the new fist pieces for their versatility in building MOCs. Another cool thing about Raanu, is that you can do some combining with Malum, and a few other pieces to make a more noble and powerful looking Glatorian.

Go out and buy Raanu if you have the extra dough to spend, you won't regret it, even at their current price point! As far as looks, he is one of the most aesthetically pleasing small sets so far this year next to Metus, Zesk and Tarduk.

ProsWhat's to like?

The mask is a lovely new part, and makes it worth buying the set just for that!

FISTS! Yeller FISTS!

Cool shield parts

New color for Solek style leg

ConsWhat's not to like?

Stiff design

Boring fire sword, a bit of an overused part in my book

The build is too simplistic

Set loses its shiny cool factor not too long after purchase

Overall, I think Raanu is worth schuckin' out the bucks for. If you had a choice of what Agori to buy, I would suggest the sets I mentioned above, but only after you have bought your Glatorian first. Hopefully this review was as informative to you as it was for me to write! So whatcha waiting for? Go out and get him already!

So this is the last set review you'll be seeing until the Summer 2009 sets are released. Hopefully, as always, it was helpful and informative. After you've finished thanking Roa for taking the time to share her thoughts, check back for all the latest Bionicle news!